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| Sometimes,
success can have its downside. After more than 100 years of world-wide
research and extraordinary collections development—when the University of
Pennsylvania Museum accessioned nearly one million archaeological and
anthropological artifacts—UPM had reached the limit of its ability to
maintain its collections under present conditions. There was simply not
enough space to house the collections properly. Many collections were
stored in overcrowded rooms, making access for faculty, staff, students
and visiting researchers very difficult. There were no study rooms for
researchers; no place for faculty to bring classes to look at
objects. |
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Shown here: Virginia Greene (left), Senior Conservator, and
Adria Katz (right), |
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From a long-term collection standpoint, by far the greatest problem was the lack of climate control. Extreme and rapid fluctuations in temperature and relative humidity, excess levels of visible and ultraviolet light, and atmospheric pollution all contribute to the deterioration of irreplaceable collections. From a conservation perspective, the ethnographic collections are those most at risk. It is possible to stabilize archaeological metals by keeping them in low-humidity cabinets, and to deal with the destructive effects of salts in pottery by large-scale desalinization projects--conservation measures that the Museum has been undertaking for many years. However, for organic materials, such as feather headdresses, baskets, ivory carvings and animal skin clothing, there are no equivalent treatments that will mitigate the effects of uncontrolled daily changes in temperature and relative humidity. Objects made of several different materials are at particular risk, as the component parts expand and contract at different rates. After extensive engineering and planning studies, the Museum embarked on a critically needed, multi-phase program of expansion and renovation. The first phase is the construction of a new storage and research wing. Later phases, soon to begin, will include installation of climate control in the existing buildings, including storage areas, offices and galleries. For the past several years, the Museum's Conservation Department has been in high gear, as about 100,000 of the Museum's most at-risk artifacts, ethnographic materials from the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania, have been undergoing a conservation check and packaging process prior to being moved into the new wing. The move, scheduled to begin in early April 2002, may take up to 18 months, as collections staff make the transition to the new space in a systematic fashion. The collection keepers and registrars have already moved into bright new offices in the Mainwaring Wing. In the months and years to come, the new wing will provide state-of-the-art storage facilities for most of the ethnographic collections; much needed research space for faculty, students and visiting scholars; and a seminar room. Access to these collections will be dramatically improved, as scattered collections will be brought together, and study areas will be located close to storage. The new climate control system will create an environment with stable temperature and humidity, and filtered air. This system, and the new building it is housed in, promise to greatly enhance preservation of the collections for future generations of scholars, students and the general public. |